Welcome to Tennessee, now get the fuck out.

BUSH CUTS CHILDREN'S HEALTH WHILE REWARDING HMO'S

During today's trip to Tennessee [1], President Bush will hold a photo-op at
a children's hospital and then attend a $2,000-per-person fundraiser at the
home of a top health insurance executive [2]. The two events provide a
perfect display of how the President has misled America on health care
policy: at the same time that he has tried to slash funding for children's
hospitals, his budget lavishes billions of dollars on health insurance
companies who fund his campaign.

During today's first event, the President is expected to praise children's
hospitals. However, his budget this year proposes to freeze funding for
grants to these hospitals, preventing their federal grants from keeping pace
with inflation [3]. He also proposes a $94 million cut to the Community
Access Program [4] - effectively eliminating another program that provides
grants to children's hospitals in need. And he is trying to slash $158
million (68%) from training grants for specialties that include pediatrics
[5]. These efforts are consistent with his past policies: last year, the
President proposed cutting $86 million (30%) from grants to children's
hospitals [6]. And in 2002, he proposed to cut $35 million (14%) from grants
for children's hospitals to train pediatricians [7].

After his photo-op at the children's hospital, the President will attend a
fundraiser at the home of Clay Jackson [8], an executive [9] at a health
insurance company called BB&T [10]. Unlike the children's hospitals whose
budgets have been cut, insurance executives like Jackson have a lot to thank
the President for. For instance, the President crafted a Medicare bill that
gives health insurance companies a new $130 billion subsidy [11], while
forcing many seniors off traditional Medicare and into HMOs [12]. The
President has also done nothing to address the skyrocketing costs of health
care, sitting by last year as HMOs raised premiums by 13% [13] and raked in
an extra $6.7 billion from Americans [14].

Sources:
1. "Bush to pump health care, campaign coffers with Nashville visit",
WATE.com, 05/27/2004, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37841.
2. "Bush expected in Nashville for Republican fund-raiser", Nashville City
Paper, 05/11/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37842.
3. AAMC.org, 02/06/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37843.
4. House Budget Committee,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37844.
5. House Budget Committee,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37844.
6. Democratic Policy Committee, 05/20/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37845.
7. Children's Defense Fund Action Council,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37846.
8. OpenSecrets.Org,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37847.
9. "BB&T to Acquire Nashville-Based Agency", Insurance Journal, 08/04/2003,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37848.
10. BB&T, http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37849.
11. F.A.I.R. Medicare,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37850.
12. Public Citizen, 02/13/2003,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37851.
13. "Health costs skyrocket", CNN Money, 09/22/2003,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37852.
14. "HMO profits jumped 52%", CBS Marketwatch, 05/04/2004,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=1171247&l=37853.